Highchair to booster seat... why the rush?

I just went out to lunch with a friend and she not-so-subtly suggested that the boys should be transitioning to booster seats by now. I told her that they don't sit still well enough to eat a meal in a booster, they fit just fine in the highchairs, and they LIKE being buckled in. Trevor did his own buckle while I was fastening Trent's. I guess I don't understand why I would want to transition them at this age. I told her that they still sit in highchairs at home and you should have seen the look she gave me then. She said it's so much less mess when they aren't using trays anymore. Uh... can't I put a plate on the tray? I have a rug under the diningroom table so until they quit dropping food on the floor, I'm in no rush to put them over that rug.

Am I missing something here? Is there some huge advantage to booster seats? It seems to me that when I go to a restaurant and see 2 year olds who are using booster seats, they are generally up and playing more than eating (including my friend's kid who ate maybe 5 noodles and a couple of carrot sticks and I'm sure she had to feed him when she got home). Mine are actually eating their meals at the restaurant! Why would I want to mess with that?

 

I wouldn't. We generally get asked if we want boosters and tell them, no, highchairs. We definitely need something with a strap. It is enough of challenging feeding them in the highchairs with them rocking the chairs, kicking the seats, and touching people as they go by. I am in no rush to go to boosters and will stay in highchairs as long as I can. Unfortunately, my son is probably heading out of them size-wise soon.

 

Why pay more money when the highchairs still work? On this subject she is a loon. We twin moms can't afford for our twinkies to be up roaming around not eating! How does she expect you to enjoy the lunch with the 2 of them causing choas? Mine will be buckled in until they can sit still for longer.

 

My girls were still in high chairs when they were 3 years old (pulled up to the table without the tray). For us it was more practical than getting rid of their chairs and going out and buying boosters. We went straight from that to sitting on regular chairs with no booster. I'm not sure if going from high chairs to boosters is an important milestone, and if it is, I have no idea when it is supposed to be reached. If you're missing something, I guess I missed it too .

 

Our kids are about the same age and it never occurred to me that I should use the boosters when we go out to eat. Like yours, mine seem to like the high chairs at restaurants and try to do the buckles themselves. We just pull them up to the table and ask for small appetizer plates for them, and they do fine. At home, we use the First Years feeding seat, we just didn't have room for high chairs, but it's the same idea. They are buckled in and have a tray, and we put their plate or bowl on the tray. Yeah, I'm not sure what the big deal is.

 

I get asked all the time when I am going to officially change them to boosters? I ignore them! Mine are fine in the high chairs and I am fine with them still using them!